Ever since then Senator Obama decided to run for president in 2007, he has been modelling the behavior he would wish all of us and, particularly all Democrats, to follow. He never panicked or over dramatized anything, but patiently, methodically built an organization that was bigger, better and infinitely more effective than the existing Democratic Party. And he did it with finesse and courtesy, never once publicly criticizing the Democratic establishment or embarrassing any individual, no matter how much he was insulted by them. He showed us how to have immense grace under pressure, how to press forward on difficult days, how to shut out the naysayers, how to respect our skills and empower each other. As president he has showed us optimism combined with pragmatism and realism. He has never stooped to the level of his enemies and has tried to seek a common ground, even as he worked against the most massive obstruction in history. After the midterms, he literally went in front of the cameras and taught us how to act– not to cower or despair, but to lift our heads with pride and a sense of optimism and move forward. He told us by his actions alone to give nothing to our critics, waste no sorrow on our enemies, remain undaunted at our prospects and just keep moving forward bringing light and honesty into the darkest hate. If Democrats in this country–and that includes you, Jon Tester–opened their eyes and realized how much this incredible president is teaching us every day we would not only become better human beings, we would never lose another election.

A different take on the election

Much handwringing over the Democratic party’s electoral fortunes has taken place this past week. Teabaggers are ecstatic. The most loathesome wingnuts are going to make our lives even more miserable than we have already endured. Some young people justify young voter apathy by saying Democrats did not give them what they wanted, as shown below in the Carl Gibson piece titled:

And Democratic Party leaders will probably learn the wrong lessons and move further repub-lite.

I think differently about what happened. I believe what we are seeing is the brick wall that Coalition Politics slams into when the regular institutions of Democracy have been irreparably subverted and perverted by oligarchs and their political minions who have convinced many Americans that nihilism is their birthright. What do I mean?

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Normally, in a democracy, aspiring politicians and party platforms woo voters with promises of what they will DO for said voters, and the campaigns go full steam ahead in competition. And whoever wins tries to maintain voter approval and possible reelection based on their ability to account to the voter. Otherwise how do you win power again, right?

Wrong. Voters? What voters? GOP-Oligarchs’ answer to electoral imperatives and demographic change, is to shrink the electorate till they could “drown it in a bathtub”!